Florida surfer ‘Gnarly Charley,’ 62, survives shark attack — and was back chasing waves during Hurricane Helene days later

He almost had to hang five!

A Florida surfer survived a terrifying shark attack when a massive man-eater sunk its teeth into his foot — and was back in the water chasing waves from Hurricane Helene just a few days later.

Charley Hajek, 62 — who fittingly goes by “Gnarly Charley” — was surfing in the foamy waters off New Smyrna Beach on Sept. 22 when he came face-to-face with a bull shark.

“I stepped off my board, and I landed right on a shark,” he told SWNS. “As soon as I stepped on it, we both freaked out.”

The storm-chasing sexagenarian felt something “clamp down on my ankle and foot” — and knew immediately it was an apex predator.

“My whole foot was in its mouth for maybe a second, and then it let me go,” he said.

“It didn’t thrash or wiggle, just bit and let go. Like a warning: don’t mess with me.”

Stoked to be alive, the aging daredevil quickly padded back to shore, where his leg began gushing blood.

“As soon as I got to the beach and took that first step, the blood started squirting out. That’s when I knew it was bad,” he said.

“I wrapped my surfboard leash around my leg as a tourniquet and drove myself to the hospital.”

He received 10 stitches and was back in the water by Sept. 27 — the day after winds from Hurricane Helene created massive waves off the coast of the Sunshine State, he said.

“I barely had my stitches out, and I’m chasing a hurricane,” he said. “How crazy is that? Makes for a good story.”

Hajek then rode the waves from Oct. 11 to 13 on the heels of Hurricane Milton’s storm surge, he said.

“I saw tornadoes spawn right behind the house I was staying at in Jensen Beach, coconuts falling from the trees onto the roof,” he said. “It was kind of scary, man.”

He said he’s since seen 11 sharks and determined that surfing on the inside of a jetty is the most dangerous.

“Sharks are pretty harmless. But again, I stepped on it, so I got bit. But when you go in the shark pit, that’s way gnarly,” he said.

Ultimately, he said his philosophy is to respect the ocean and respect mother nature.

“Emotionally, I had to put the shark attack behind me. I love chasing storms. Wherever the storm goes, I go,” he said.   

“You just have to respect the ocean, respect sharks, and respect hurricanes. Be prepared, not scared.”